Moms stomp on Skechers over Daddy'$ Money sneakers line for teens

A screenshot from a Skechers ad for its new Daddy'$ Money sneakers line for teen girls. One mother says the shoes would be fitting as a "Saturday Night Live" sketch -- but not for her daughter.

A screenshot from a Skechers ad for its new Daddy'$ Money sneakers line for teen girls. One mother says the shoes would be fitting as a "Saturday Night Live" sketch -- but not for her daughter. (Skechers Youtube screenshot)

Tiffany Hsu

Skechers, the Manhattan Beach footwear maker, has a new line of shoes targeted at teen girls, retailing at stores such as DSW and Dillard’s.

Sounds normal, until this: The collection is called “Daddy’$ Money.” The sneakers have hidden 2-inch wedges. Designs include animal prints and lips, with names such as “Gimme Megabucks,” “Gimme Wicked” and “Gimme Mucho Dinero.” An accompanying video features singers crooning about “daddy’s girls” with sound effects like a cash register’s “cha-ching.”

The pitch on the brand’s Facebook page: “Get spoiled with Daddy’$ Money, ultra-cool shoes that will put you in the spotlight with a dose of swag…”

Skechers did not immediately return requests for comment. But how are mothers responding?

“It's so bad that if it were a Saturday Night Live sketch -- it would be hilarious,” wrote Rants from Mommyland blogger Lydia. “But it's not. It's real. And I had to watch it all the way through twice before it started to sink in that people were seriously trying to sell this garbage to my daughter.”

Some other complaints and accusations from various parenting blog posts:

Heels aren’t good for young girls with growing bones: “Injuries? Yes. Back and leg pain? Yes. And those things lead to a subsequent decline in the ability to focus on school or participate in sports or physical activities,” Lydia wrote.

The takeaway for impressionable teens: That manipulation of males is the way to go. “We don’t want them thinking that instead of working for things, they just go ask Daddy (or whatever other man they have in their life in the future),” wrote blogger Jeanne Sager on the Stir.

“This ad campaign is wrong on so many levels that I don’t know where to begin!” wrote Barbara Wills Lyon on Daddy’$ Money’s Facebook page. “The wonderful dads I know provide much more than money for their children.”